Numerous vendors at CES 2022 this week showed off augmented reality headsets with expectations for a breakthrough year ahead for smart glasses.
AR headset maker Vuzix was at the show in Las Vegas demonstrating its latest products, which are aimed primarily at enterprise users.
Vuzix Chief Executive Paul Travers is bullish on prospects for smart glasses and wearable heads-up displays in 2022.
"Smart glasses are on their way," Travers told Investor's Business Daily. "The world is adopting them more and more."
Shares of Vuzix were down 1.6% to 8.10 in afternoon trades on the stock market today.
New Product Called 'Paradigm Shift'
At CES 2022, which runs through Friday, Vuzix promoted its Vuzix Shield smart safety glasses. The glasses are set to hit the market in the second half of 2022.
Vuzix Shield offers lightweight, prescription-ready safety glasses for enterprise applications. The glasses feature binocular waveguide displays powered by a pair of micro-LED projectors. They can generate crisp video with contextual information for the wearer.
The glasses allow workers at warehouses and other job sites to get hands-free support. The Vuzix Shield connects wirelessly to smartphones for phone calls. It also has two front-facing cameras that allow workers to get remote video support when problems arise.
"I think it's a paradigm shift for smart glasses in the enterprise space," Travers said. "They're designed so you can walk up to a piece of equipment and get work instructions."
In late December, Vuzix announced an agreement with wireless carrier Verizon to leverage Verizon's 5G network to deliver augmented reality sports experiences to Vuzix Shield smart glasses.
CES 2022: Qualcomm Powering AR Devices
Vuzix Shield uses Qualcomm's Snapdragon XR1 platform.
At CES 2022, Qualcomm said its Snapdragon chips are powering more than 50 devices in the virtual reality and augmented reality markets.
At the show, Qualcomm also announced an expanded collaboration with Microsoft to develop lightweight AR glasses.
Qualcomm is investing in chips for smart glasses because it sees the devices as eventual replacements for smartphones, Travers said.
Also at CES 2022, Chinese television maker TCL showed off prototype smart glasses with plans to enter the market.
Consumer electronics giant Apple reportedly will announce a mixed-reality headset later this year. Mixed reality marries aspects of virtual and augmented reality technologies. Apple was not an exhibitor at CES 2022.
Follow Patrick Seitz on Twitter at @IBD_PSeitz for more stories on consumer technology, software and semiconductor stocks.
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